Legacy of a God
by NeonZangetsu
Summary: Lightning. The hammer of the gods. A thing of immense unstoppable power, yet as fleeting as the beat of a hummingbird's wing. In its fleeting moment of existence it reshapes whatever it touches. One man will reshape the world with its power. NarutoxHarem
1. Emergence

**A/N: Bad news guys and gals. I'm sick. REALLY sick. I won't go into details, but, in part of my illness, I felt obligated to give you all a little something something to show that, despite my degenerating health, my mind is still as sharp as ever. I really hope you enjoy this, and, I apologize if any of you get lost in translation.**

**_Emergence_**

The dreams churned in fits and spurts as he slept in the coffin.

_'Wake..._

Flashes of lightning, peals of thunder. Blood on his hands, drenching the deck of a boat that defied nature; a ship that soared through the skies. He rememebered the pale faced man who sat aboard the throne of that ship, after all how could he not? He remembered the sick satisfaction as he drove the dagger home, wrenching it through bone and flesh and sinew until it finally found his heart.

_...up.'_

He remembered darkness for a time thereafter. He remembered a sudden loss of gravity, of vertigo, followed by blackness. The man of thunder and lightning was dead; because his dream-self knew this to be true. Just as he knew that his power, the power of the heavens, was now free to be claimed as _his _own. Power sought. Power granted. Such were the machinations of fate; set into motion by that perculair lad with the hat of straw.

_'Right..._

He held the fruit in his hand and savored his victory, a sick and twisted satisfaction. His dream-self bit into the fruit without hesistation and savored that sweet, bitter nectar. For an instant, the world burned a cold, terrible white, as he was bathed within a curtain of indigo. He cared little for the man's vessel; for it had already served its purpose. Like any tool that no longer had any worth, he, the stowaway on that great and terrible skyark, cast that flying carriage down. Thrust it deep into the depths of the cloud ocean. It would trouble those of the land of sky no longer.

_...now.'_

In retrospect, he wanted to thank the boy with the strawhat. Were it not for him, had he not weakened that vain and deluded _"god"_ of the sky, then heaven would eventually quake wherever he resided, that powerful, deluded man of the sky. To the remorseless clouds that followed he would respond in kind, smiling all the way. He had a new goal, so it would seem, and it was to these thoughts that his body began to stir from the slumber into which it had been so inadvertantly thrust.

_'Get the fuck up!'_

His hand lurched upward. His head slammed against a low ceiling and kissed the iron clasp of his coffin. The rattling of chains, coupled with the not-so-subtle swaying of his strange abode proved to be some cause for alarm and rememberance. He vaguely recalled his departure from the land of cloud and sky; forsaking the realm he'd sought so feverishly before in his travels, descending in a light skiff provided for him by the inhabitants of that land.

_'UP!'_

He remembered...little after the splashdown. The opening of the barrel, that white-hot flare of crimson and scarlet struck a chord in his mind, true, but this was not the reason for which blood soaked into his blond bangs. Frustrated, both by memory loss and his unsupposing captivity, a stray spark escaped the cofines of his prison. It was enough. It took little more than that dim ember of curent to settle on the rotted drywood...

..until the strength surged through his limbs once more.

His body strained against the ties that bound it, and sparks sprayed themselves about. No webbing could hold him! No bonds of heaven nor earth could hope to restrain such a force; such a being! Naturally, the wood could not. Instead of containing his power, as it had been meant, _the coffin shattered._ Stale air burst from his lungs, replaced by a cool breeze that soon covered the sky in grayish layer.

The strange mouse-like spider that had captured him shrieked in protest. And with good measure. There were dozens of them! They poured from every nook and cranny, their tendrils of mist and webbing seeking to capture him once more. He swatted and them, crushed them beneath his fingers, but for every one he quashed, another of its strange and stitched bretheren was there to replace it.

"He's loose!" One of the filthy things shrieked! "Quickly! Someone! Anyone! We must report this to Moria-sama at-

The name struck a chord deep within the amnesiac, and he smiled.

He smiled; completely aware that the smallest muscle spasm could send his coffin teetering over the chain and into oblivion. But he did not waver. Instead, he pushed against the remaining netting, brushing aside the groping threads and wisps that swiftly wound themselves around his arms and legs; even as he struggled to stand. It did naught but delay the inevitable, in the end.

"What the hell is this?" The blond exhaled sharply,extracting his remaining limb from the rotted timber.**_ "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?"_**

He stretched his hand to the heavens and gave a fearful cry. Sure enough, a bolt of luminescent blue came down from the stratosphere and struck him. Yet he did not feel pain. Far from it, he felt invigorated by it. The dancing energy that had manifested inside him increased in fervor, coursing through his veins at a vastly accelerated rate. It pushed at his innards wanting release, wanting to escape him.

So he let it do just that.

Soon, it started to rain. It was very unusual to have this much rain poured in Thriller Bark. But rain kept on pouring sorely. It looked as if the mist would be driven away at the rain strengthened, building into a strange semblance of weeping...

It was sorrowful mourning.

Tendrils of azure light burst forth from his body as his once captors cringed in fear. Trees, animals and zombies alike, were caught in a furious maelstrom of indigo. Many writhed uncontrollably in cerulean tendrils of light and energy. Others caught fire, mingling flickering hues of red and orange with that of the blue that pervaded the scene. With the chain serving as the conduit, the coffin inexplicably detonated and exploded.

_Not quietly._

Somehow, in the chaos, the blond managed to extricate himself from the pile of burning timber. Unharmed,_ unhindered_, sparks crackled across his form; brilliants cords that were both of white and blue stretching across the horizon to form a brilliantly deafening peal of thunder. When the deep reverberations at last subsided, the blond reached a hand up towards a whiskered cheek, in an attempt to push some semblance of warmth back into his cheeks.

"Naruto." He murmurred numbly to himself, a snatch of memory coming back to the castaway as he peered upward at the grand mansion that loomed before him. "My name is Uzumaki...Naruto." Satisfied with having at least acquired a name to which he could be called, the former captive took a shuffling step forward. His tattered cargo jeans did him little service as he edged a step northward; the material was frayed around the seams with burns, and all but falling apart.

The same could be said for the ruffled oranged vest he had once worn. Mingled with the like of a black captain's coat, it too, had suffered under the wrath of the Goro Goro no mi and its explosive power. Reduced to little more than burning cinders, the blond let slide his ruffled vest and jacket; those garments smoldering away from him even as that thought occurred to him that he might find answers in the mansion over yonder.

_"EEEEEEEEEEYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"_

A bloodcurdling scream, a woman's shriek followed by two others, suddenly split the night before him.

"Huh." With a muffled grunt, the erstwhile Logia-user staggered three steps forward. The scream had put him on edge, leaving him tense and hesistant as he scooted those few precious feet forward and toward the stairwell. Now, as he neared the staircaise_-the mist fled from his approach as if it were tangible-_he permitted himself a sman smile that bespoke solely of sadness and loneliness.

After awhile, he realized he was shaking.

"Where the hell...am I?"

**A/N: Meh, tis a result of reading the Skypiea Arc. For those of you who wonder, yes, Naruto does have amnesia. Yes, he did Kill Enel. YES, he had the powers of the Goro Goro no mi, and as a result is slightly , he is on thriller bark, but broke out before his shadow could be nabbed. Timewise, this takes place while the Strawhats are wandering the island, (After Luffy, Sanji, and Zoro have been nabbed) And if any of you are wondering about that little burst of OOC back there, hey, After all, wouldn't you be a bit confused if you suddenly woke up and couldn't remember anything? I know I (cough) would! Hehehe, I can promise that, come the Sabaody Archipeligo arc, things will be most interesting...**


	2. Godhood I

**A/N: My muse is going BERSERK and I am on an updating frenzy! I haven't touched this fic in quite awhile, so I decided it woulf be best to finally brush the dust and dirt from its pages and start writing again! That being said, I apologize if this is short! I needed a good intermission chapter what with the sight being dumb and refusing to send out any email notifications. Now...**

**...ONTO THE STORY!**

_Which is faster? Light...or Lightning? _

_~Naruto._

**Godhood**

Cold fury burned the world white and the world trembled.

The darkness hid his face. Thunder and lightning danced through the grief stricken sky as he descended to the battlefield. He was both terrible and handsome to behold. Death and suffering followed him as his stewards. His breath drew a third of the armies sent against him to hell and those that remained were nothing more than a great feast for vultures. He was the one for whom darkness parted and became created; his gaze held the soul of the enemy of all living things...

He was death incarnate.

That being said, it wasn't all that long before his enemies realized they were hopelessly outmatched. They tried to flee. A bolt of lightning cut their retreat short. Another left a ashen crater where they'd once stood. But more came. For every one he cut down, two more came to take its places. They emerged from the ground,crawling their way out of the earth, trying to trip him up as he marched onward.

Trapsing across a moving island was one thing, but actually finding his way was proving to be another matter entirely. He'd been trying to make his way to the castle in the distance was bound to encounter someone sooner rather than later, or so he assumed. Which was how he found himself in his current situation.

The blade whisked past his face for a second time, prompting him to retreat once more. His enemy attacked with the high frequency sword, spearheading the lunge at Naruto as if it had been launched by a powerful bow. Naruto barely avoided the blade; because the armored soldier moved with the speed of lightning. It was ironic, really. He with a power to control the heavens himself, was fleeing from this, from a blade? Absurd!

_Why the hell am I running?_

For some reason, the thought set his blood boiling. He stopped, snarling as the zombie swordsman came after him, swinging all three swords in tandem.

He flung a hand outward on the backswing, contemptously batting the katana aside when it came around for a second strike. His fingers closed around the blade, uncaring as the weapon bit into his palm. His attacker grunted in reply, struggling to extricate its weapon from his flesh. He had no reason to fear these creatures; because he was better than them. He was superior. There was no need for irrational fear here. He'd eradicate each and every one of them before they had the chance to torment them further. With a sinsiter grin, Naruto gripped both blades tight and poured one millions volts of electricity into them, and by defunct, their zombie master.

_"Aaaargh!"_

The result was as catastrophic was it was horrific.

Consumed by the lightning and charred to nothingness, the zombie, and its shadow, ceased to be. Naruto watched it drift off into the mist, and wondered at it. He'd seen the same feat many a time now; each time he defeated a zombie_-scorching it into a charred pile of ashes_-its shadow seemed to take on a life of its own, drifting away, deep into the heart of the mysterious island.

He felt as though he should remember something about that. Nope. There were still too many holes in his memory. He knew only his name, that he commanded the powers of the Goro Goro no mi, and that he wanted the hell off this god forsaken island!

Unfortunately, our dear hero wasn't going to get his wish anytime soon

"MEAT!"

The ground trembled beneath his feet, as though the entire island itself had shaken. Another tremor. Closer than the last. Naruto looked up. Up. _Up_. Up...and saw something straight out of a horror movie. It was large. No, scratch that. It was freakin huge!

And then, then he saw the massive zombie lumbering towards him. A great giant of a creature, with stout legs, long forearms and a massive protruding stomach. Its red skin was an eerie sight in the darekened mist; its horns piercing the clouds, its lone eye looked past him, fixated upon something in the far horizon. For a moment, he thought he was safe; that this great goliath didn't see him.

And then it saw him.

"SANJI!" It exclaimed, hollering at him. "MEAT!"

Naruto sweatdropped.

_"Who the fuck is Sanji?"_

**A/N: Oh, whatever could Naruto be up to? Trying so hard to find a way off the island. Ah, and it seems Oars has found him while his still has a bit of free will left in him. This can't possibly end well, can it? One can only wonder. And remember, this IS a harem fic. We'll be seeing the Strawhat crew as of next chapy, once Naruto finishes tangling with Oars...needless to say, it won't be pretty, so expect a heartpounding thriller of a chapter next time! Also, I really need all of you to tell me who you want in the harem?**

**Again, look forward to the battle between Naruto and Kizaru in the near future! Light vs. Lightning! It's going to be a slice of epicness for the ages! Now onto updating Passing the Torch!**

**R&R! =D**


	3. Godlike

**A/N: Well, now!I'm so glad all of you like this story so much! I'm still looking forward to the eventual clash between the Goro Gor no mi and the Pika Pika no mi, almost as much as I am writing it! Light or Lightning? Which is stronger? It can be debated to death, but in the end, I really, truly, have no idea. In other news, my computer got bugged today. _Thankfully_ I have another profile on it but as its the Guest setting, things might take a wee bit longer than they ought to. I no longer have my precious I Tunes anymore, so I'm forced to turn to Youtube to satisfy my musical cravings. I cannot write without music, but thankfully I can still write!, Now, in this chapters, things take a radical turn from the events of One Piece canon. Hope you enjoy!**

**I might even present you with a preview of Naurto's eventual brawl with Kizaru in the comign chapters...**

_"I choose death. If if means my precious people get to live on, then I choose death. A thousand times...I choose death!"_

_~Naruto._

**Godlike**

Gecko Moria was having a fit. An absolute fit! He's escaped! The newest addition to Thriller Bark, the crown jewel of his collection, the one shadow whom he would use to create the ultimate zombie-greater even than Oars-was gone! Missing! Nowhere to be found! Why, you ask? Because he'd escaped! Not only had _he_ broken out of his coffin_-depriving him of his shadow-_but now he was rampaging across the island, laying waste to whatever was in his wake! He spat lightning and flung fire, destroying all whom dared to cross his path. And now he was about to do the same to Oars! He quailed at the thought. Zombies might be unable to feel pain but that didn't make them invincible, or even indestructible. Not by any means. And now he wasn't about to lose Oars to this psycho demon! He had to do something!

"Someone do something about him!" Moria screeched, jerking his finger at a monitor, at the massacre taking place. "I don't care what you do, just to it now! Don't let him ruin my plans! I swear, if you doooo_oooorgh!_

He would have said more, had not a rubberized fist struck his face at that very moment.

* * *

><p><em>(Meanwhile)<em>

A burst of bluish white streaked across the horizon, decimating the zombie forces.

**"Raikoho!"** _(Thunder Roar Cannon!)_

A brilliant surge of lightning blazed forth from his palm, striking Oars dead in the face and sending the giant sprawling. Naruto smirked as Oars toppled backwards, falling with such force that the island itself trembled in outright consternation. He hit the sand with a thud, limbs trembling slightly as sparks skittered across his muscles and then fell still. Naruto heaved a harsh gasp as pain stabbed at his ches- lancing through his ribs and stomach. Oars had surprised him earlier with his newfound speed; for a great oaf he moved with startling agility. Naruto hadn't been able to dematerialize in time, and he'd paid the price-a broken rib-in recompense for his temerity. Breathing had become an effort in-and-of itself and his earlier elemental effort had only served to increase the pain tenfold.

But now the ghastly giant was down and he wasn't getting back up. _He'd better not, _Naruto thought to himself._ I won't be able to manage many more of thoese._ The last remnants of the _Raiikoho_ hunger high overhead, hissing and spitting through the air, lingering over the giant's frame before disappearing entirely. The deadly thunder cannon, just one of his newly named techniques and like all of them, it promised a punishing blow to whomever received it.

_Just a little longer,_ he willed his beleagured body. _Just...a little...longer._

"Ouch!"

Naruto balked as the great behemoth suddenly stirred. He immediately struggled to rise, jabbing the tip of his massive hand stabbing deep into the ground and forcing himself up from his back. Towering over him, once more, the red-skinned giant patted its stomach depreciatingly and loosed a depreciating belch.

"Eh?!" Naruto guffawed, gawping up at the great giant as the smoke cleared, revealing nary so much as a scratch on the giant's jaw. "That didn't do anything?!"

"Ahahaha...that tickled." The giant boomed down at him. "But it didn't taste very good...

Naruto face-vaulted.

_He thought that was a meal?!_

"Oi oi oi!" He snarled. "I'm not trying to feed you, dumbass! I'm trying to kill you!"

"But you can't kill me." Oars scratched his massive skull with an equally massive forefinger.

"Eh?"

...because I'm a zombie!"

* * *

><p>Miles away from the clash of the titans, in the deepest, darkest, bowels of the ship, "Dead Bones" Brooke suddenly sneezed.<p>

"Ara...I didn't think I could still do that...

* * *

><p><em>(Back with Naruto and Oars...)<em>

Naruto's left eye twtiched.

...somehow...I have the feeling you just broke the fourth wall."

"What's the fourth wall?"

"Well its...aargh! I don't have time to explain this to you!" He flung his hand forward, stabbing an index finger accusingly into the air. "Zombie or not, this'll put you out of your misery!"

**"_Byakuraisho." (White lightning fist)_**

Oars didn't even have time to bring his arm up to block. Naruto had been in front of him and then he was gone, his body vanishing in a flash. He knew _that_ was a bad, so he'd immediately turned around, just in time to receive a strike to the chest. The fist, when it struck him, was like nuclear sledgehammer; detonating angrily in the pit of his stomach, a shallow slice reaching from his right clavicle to his left hip, forcing him backwards almost to the edge of the courtyard. He doubled over as soon as he was away from him, his free hand coming up to his wound, massive fingers pushing the stitching aside so they could put some pressure on the wound, but to no avail.

Naruto wasn't going to give him the time to recover.

* * *

><p>"Heh?"<p>

Perona blinked in surprise as the island suddenly shook. She'd been in the midst of making her plans to depart-taking with most of the Strawhats treasure-when the island began shaking. Now, the entire ship shook like a leaf; as though hand of god itself had come down from the heavens to punish them for their perversion of life. She needed to get out of here. Now!

"Hurry up!" She demanded, glaring pale daggers at the remaining zombies. "Move your feet! I want all that loot loaded on the ship yesterday!" Moria's minions swiftly scrambled to do their mistresse's bidding. However scarce had they taken a step than a hulking shadow fell over them.

"If you could take a trip, where would you like to go?"

* * *

><p>Naruto was beginning to rethink his brilliant plan to take down the jolly green giant. Not that he was jolly-or green-for that matter, but he was still a giant and a massive one at that <em>not to mention <em>one who seemed all but immune to all even the worst of his attacks. Still he rained death and destruction upon the behemoth, wary of unleashing his full power in the wake of a startling revelation. This wasn't an island. It was a ship! One that could easily capsize should he bring his full might to bear upon the zombified giant pounding after him; leaving the amnesiac blond to sink into the sea with the rest of its inhabitants.

Sadly, this left the electric blond little recourse. Unable to fight, unwilling to stand still and suffer the zombie's wrath, he really had no other choice. In other words...

He ran like hell!

The ensuing chaos-had anyone been present to witness it-was quite...well, chaotic. Naruto ran for his life and Oars bounded after him, trampling everything in his wake. More than a few zombies, were crushed beneath his massive soles, their last moments being that of terrible pain before their bodies were crushed to dust.

"Come back here!" The great giant bellowed, uncaring for those trampled under foot. "You're not getting away from me!" When Naruto continued to outdistance him, Oars laboured to catch up. "Oi! Slow...down, you! I can't keep up! I said slow down!"

"Like hell I will, you zombie bastard!" Naruto hollered over his shoulder. "I _hate_ zombies like you! You can just go die! Bleh!"

"We'll just see about that! Gomu Gomu no-

_Not again!_

Oars bounded forward and swung both hands down, the massive palms slamming into the ground where Naruto had been running. With a soft whisper, he appeared behind him, body alight with electricity. He lashed out with a single stream of azure, guiding the lethal light of his element onward and down, a tangible tether intended to trap the giant in a web of lightning. Oars pounded right through it, his foot shooting out with a speed no giant-or zombie!-should ever possess, grazing the blond

"Shit!

Naruto spun away from him, his loafers skidding along the rubble below as he retreated. A sudden torrent of blood began to pour out of his arm, staining his entire right sleeve red from the shoulder down. Yowling his fury, the blond touched a hand to the wound, willing his element to sear the wound shut. Another zombie had struck when he wasn't looking; the tip of its blades protruded hideously from his right arm. He pushed the power forward, electrifying blade and body both. Strange sword wielding zombie-bastard! Who the hell wielded three swords, anyway?!

"Gomu Gomu no...

_What in the nine circles of hell-_

Naruto jerked around as the giant's voice came from above, leaving him balking in surprise. How_-when?!-_ did he get up so high?!

His hair blew across his face as _something_ passed with impossible speed overhead. He glimpsed nothing more than a ripple in the air itself, the faintest whisp of steam or mist wadded into a ball like so much discarded parchment. Had he not been looking right at it, indeed, _expecting_ something very much like it, he'd never have known it was there.

Such was the speed with which Oars struck.

The world erupted. The murky floodwater was the blood of the earth, gushing from the wound inflicted by his attacker's invisible hammer. A ferocious tide slammed into him, threatening to knock him from his feet and for the first time he was actually grateful for the tight grip of the muck below his feet. Mud, bits of plant matter_-even a smattering of zombies and stones-_rained across the ship, blinding Naruto to anything, everything else. His ears rang with a deafening _crrrrack_, follwed by a secondly enormous splash as the great goliath failed to connet. Shards spattered his face, the surface of the stone roiled impossibly against his legs, and even without sight Naruto knew he was out of options. It was either hold back and definitely die, or bring his full power to bear and possibly die if he sank the island. Oars was already winding up a second time-

And Naruto chose the latter.

He stepped back, gathering power. Electricity flowed through him, bringing forth the clouds. Summoning the thunder. The lightning. Sparks crackled across his hair, standing it on end and glittering through his teeth. A wry smile twisted his lips. Zombies may not be able to suffer pain, but that didn't mean he couldn't charr this one to a crisp! Swirls of sapphire spiraled into his palm, thing whisps of electricity, growing larger and larger as he fed energy into it, the sphere becoming gorged with more and more power the longer he held onto it.

"Oi, shitty giant!" he roared up at Oars. "I've got something for you!"

"Huh?" Oars peered forward at the blond speck below him. "What is it? Oooh! Is it meat?!"

An overly-gracious smile shined out from beneath rough blonde bangs.

"Yeah...deep-fried and extra crispy!"

"Yay!" Oars, thinking it was just that, opened his maw wide. "I can't wait!"

Naruto laughed; it was a deep throaty sound. His right arm bulged, the power threatening to tear his body limb from limb.

"Neither can I!"

Sapphire eyes snapped into scarlet as the blond drew his arm back, focusing the entirety of his being into one horizon. His existance shrank to single point on that horizon; the massive maw of the equally massive giant towering over his head. Blue-Black sparks skittered about his flesh, his fingers closing around the sizzling sphere, lending it the very last of his energy, only to open once more. Sheathed it blue light and lightning, those sparks fled from their master, erupting upward and into the clouds as Uzumaki Naruto unveiled his latest, greatest technique.

"Now, eat this!" With a cry of exquisite agony he tore himself back from the brink and let loose all the cursed power bequeathed to him by the _Goro Goro no mi._ He thrust the spiraling sphere forward. The massive blast of azure roared forward. Behind the trail of smoke, Naruto could see Oars face drop as the lightning approached him. His mouth twisted down in fear and anguish as he realized that he had gravely underestimated what kind of meal this would be. It would be his last.

**"Hiryugekizokushintenraiho!"** _(Flying Dragon-Striking Heaven-Shaking Thunder Cannon!)_

* * *

><p>Miles away from the two titans clashing near Moria's castle, Nico Robin felt the world shudder. Now, perhaps it wasn't the world, but the ship itself. Within good reason. Lightning danced throughout the sky and cast the clouds aglow; a royal ball comprised of heavenly beings, a galla, illuminated in the darkness. Deadly streaks of bluish white, light crashed in the distance, pursued by their bretheren, the thunder and the rain. What was happening over there? Scarce had the thought formed in her mind than the horizon burned; searing the sky a fierce and blinding white.<p>

"Oi oi oi!" Sanji's cry of surprised dismay could scarcely be heard over the thunder's roar. "Just what the hell is going on over there?!" Zoro didn't share his opinion; nay, the swordsman beside her was smiling, grinning from ear to ear as the watched the almighty blast abruptly arc upward, tearing through the mists as though they were naught but paper.

"Looks interesting...

Robin was about to comment on that when she noticed something. There in the dim light, clinging to his feet. A shadow. His shadow. But how?! How was his shadow suddenly returned to him? Her mouth wanted words to explain the situation, but they refused to come. All that emerged was a soft gasp of surprise. And then, adding insult to injury, she spied Sanji's own shadow, sticking to the black soles of his shoes. With each of their own shadows returned, all that remained was Luffy's...

Finally aware of her pale complexion, Sanji chose to give voice to the rising tension within her.

"Something wrong, Robin-chwan?"

"Eh?"

Robin pointed.

"Your shadow...

"Ha!" Sanji exclaimed with glee! "I don't know what's going on, but I've got my shadow back!"

"Huh." Zoro remained nonplussed. "That's too bad, I guess."

Sanji scowled.

"What the hell was that, marimo?!"

The swordsman bristled.

"I'm saying its a shame you won't burn when the sun comes up, shitty cook!"

Sparks shot between their eyes; the flames of their rivalry ignited once more now that the danger of death was past.

"You wanna go?!"

"Anytime!" Sanji stabbed an accusing finger into the white fabric of the swordsman's shirt. "Robin-chwan will be the refereee!"

Robin locked her jaw firmly shut, biting back her reply. How had his shadow returned? Surely his zombie must be gone, then. But who had defeated it? She shook her head, dispelling all of the questionable quandries in her mind. Too many questions, not enough answers. Perhaps the return of Zoro and Sanji's shadows were related to that raging storm, on the other side of the ship. Whomever was over there seemed to be doing a fine job of defeating entire hordes of Moria's minions. No matter.

Whatever was going on over there, they'd be a part of it soon enough.

Soon enough...

* * *

><p><em>(With Naruto)<em>

Soon enough, everything was white.

Naruto flew backwards, tumbling, flipping head over heels as his penultimate technique disspated, laughing as it sheared through the mast like so much timber. He forced his body to straighten as the wind from the explosion propelled him ever backwards. He was finally able to right herself in time to avoid slamming head-first into the ground below – instead, his heels dug into the loamy soil and he was forced down onto his back. He slid backwards, her body carving a trench into the desert as Oars crumpled to his knees. The winds from the blast still ripped through Thriller Bark, but Naruto could force himself to his feet. The massive giant was slowly disintegrating, his body falling apart from a massive hole in his chest. The wind began to die as his dematerialization reached his legs.

"Choke on that one, bastard." He rasped. "I hope...it hurt."

Naruto gasped roughly, his body doubling over as she gripped his knees. His lungs were on fire. He was having trouble holding his balance. He struggled to stand up straight, to watch as the last remnants of the _Moria's _greatest creation vanished from his sight. A streak of shadow erupted from its core, shooting off somewhere into the horizon. Whomever the shadow belonged to would doubtlessly have it back soon enough. It did little to eash the ache in his chest, however.

As Oars crumbled into nothingness, Naruto fell backwards into the dirt. His chest heaved violently as he struggled to catch his breath. He had never infused used so much energy before; had he held on to the electricity for another two seconds, the buildup of energy would have easily ripped Thriller Bark in two. His shoulder already felt as though it had been shattered; he was almost certain that it had become dislocated. Well, at least his heart was still beating.

He stared up at the sky, his sea-colored irises gazing at the murky purple and black mist ceiling above him as he tried to calm himself down. He rolled his shoulder in its socket, gritting his teeth as it popped back into place. His chest gradually began to slow its heaving, His heart no longer threatening to burst from his torso. A small smile spread across his face as he reveled in his small victory, inconsquental though it might be. He was still no closer to recovering his memories, though the knowledge that he still remembered his techniques was somewhat heartening.

"Well, I can't stay here forever-

He would have said more, had not a massive shadow fallen over him in that exact instant. Had not an eerie,calm voice boomed in his ears.

"It has been quite some time...Naruto."

"Wahayah?!" The blong exclaimed, springing to his feet in surprise. "Who! What! When! Where! Why?!

Blue eyes bulged, staring into flat, rectangular glasses. _Big!_ Was his first thought as he beheld him, this strange fellow with his black paw-print jacket. If ever there was a stranger sight, he'd yet to see it. Towering over him like a skyscraper-though not nearly large as Oars-the great giant of man shifted his bible to one hand while simultaneously reaching to his glove to remove the other. Naruto bristled. His every instinct screamed, he needed to get away from this man as swiftly as possible. He carefully ignored it.

"D-Do I know you?"

For a moment, the stout giant said nothing.

"Yes, we know each other very well." When Naruto failed to reply, the bear-man continued to removedhis glove. "But it seems your memories are still sealed. And...you've consumed the Goro Goro no mi since we last saw one another. I commend you for that. However," Exposed was a paw-pad, carved into his palm. Naruto stepped backwards in alarm yet still man's monotone continued. "The World Government is not yet ready for you to make your appearance in your current state." A small smile graced his lips. "Those were your last words to me: _I will return when the time is right."_

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Naruto exclaimed aghast, desperate and confused by the man's words. "Who are you! What's this crap about my memories being sealed?! What the hell's going on?!"

There was a silence.

"I suppose I can reveal that much without repercussion." The bear-man admitted at last. "Very well. I will answer those questions." He lowered his hand, touched it to the bible beneath his arm.

"My name is Bartholomew Kuma." The man continued, his palm ascending higher and higher with each and every syllable. "Many years ago, you tasked me with sealing your memories and the blueprints trapped within them. You will remember your calling when the time is right. However, I cannot risk allowing you and the Strawhats to collide. Not just yet. If they succeed in defeating Moria, which they very well might, then everyone on this island will be caught in the crossfire. You must not catch the government's attention. Not yet.

Naruto sank to his knees in disbelied, scarcely hearing so much as a syllable. He'd sealed his memories? Deliberately? On purpose? It was too much to take in. Too much to accept. What was this about blueprints? What was this about his return? None of it made any sense! Tears streaked down his face, drawing sizzling sparks across his flesh. He couldn't remember. Try, as he might, he could not bring himself to remember. Everything was buggered; when he tried to reach for an image, it slipped through his fingers like so much liquid. He didn't know what to do with it. What could he do with it.

"Uzumaki Naruto...

Kuma's palm lsuddenly ay poised, trapped a mere centimeter between Naruto's face and the empty air.

"If you could take a trip, where would you like to go?"

Naruto wearily raised his gaze.

_"Nani?"_

"If you could take a trip, where would you like to go?" Kuma rephrased the question. "Somewhere warm or somewhere cold? A dangerous place or a safe place? I ask you again, if you could take a trip, where would you like to go? Naruto suppressed a bitter chuckle at the man's phrase. _You shatter my world into little tiny pieces and then you ask me if I want to take a **vacation?** Just who the hell are you Bartholomew Kuma? _Honestly, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. In the end, he decided to toss out an answer anyway.

"Somewhere warm, I guess." He decided at last. "Someplace I'd like."

Kuma's glasses glittered intently.

_"Very well."_

"Wait, why're you asking me this anywayyyyyyyyyyy-

His last sight was that of that paw descending upon him. And then...

_...blackness._

**A/N: Betcha didn't expect that now, did ya? The Thriller Bark Saga was indeed a fun one, but I opted to cut it short this time around. Powerful though he may be, Naruto is by no means invincible, as you'll find out in the second chapter. His irrational fear of ghosts isn't his only weakness, not by any means. Remember, ****that this story, is going to be dark. It may not necessarily have a happy ending in store for everyone...and we don't even know where Kuma sent him?! I leave that to you, dear readers!**

**Now, in the immortal words of Atlas...**

**...would you kindly review?**

**R&R! =D**


	4. Godlike II

**A/N: YOHO! Its been two long years since I've touched this story, but here I am again! I've made a pledge to update all my One Piece stories post haste, although I will admit, most of my focus has been on Prince of Darkness at the moment. Feel free to give it a read sometime! And here we are at last! Finally an update! I'm sure all of you have been wondering where Naruto would land after Kuma launched him. Well, I think it's high time we found out.**

**...let the long awaited rebirth of this story begin! Onward with Legacy of a God! Fair warning, Naruto is not very nice in this chapter! And can you blame him?**

_"You think I'm a god?!"_

_~Naruto._

**Godlike II**

Naruto woke up.

This surprised him, since he didn't know he'd been asleep. And in fact, he realized a few seconds later, he hadn't been, save in the most liberal definition of the word, judging by the very large and very _painful _bruise on the back of his head. He moved gingerly, setting off celestial fireworks that ricocheted and reverberated within his skull. Purple nebulae, orange-white supernovae, silver comets-it was a whole galaxy of pain, trapped in the confines of his head.

The blonde groaned and made a mental note never to associate with any pirate ever again outside those he felt he could trust-and he was going to be very particular about them as well.

All right, then. Onto the second order of business. Where was he?

The immediate answer was that he was lying on floor, mostly on his stomach, a little on the side. Make that a deck; wherever this was, it certainly wasn't the floor of Thriller Bark he'd been in. That one had been made of earth and synthwood, covered with blood and a lot more unwholesome things. This one was cold metal, dead and unfeeling to the touch. As he lay there, it vibrated ever so slightly. An all-but-subsonic thrum with which Naruto was quite familiar.

Voices. The roar of a crowd.

He tried reconstructing the last few moments of consciousness he remembered. He recalled the hulking form of Bartholomew Kuma looming over him. He even remembered his assailant's inquiry about where he would like to go on a vacation, and thanks very much for that piece of advice...and then he'd been hit, no doubt by the massive man's palm, although it felt more like a falling sledgehammer.

Fall down there; wake up here. Okay-where was here?

Not on Thriller Bark, that much seemed certain. Nothing could fail to remind him of the stench of rotten flesh he'd smelt there. This was not that. He could hear voices as he lay there in the black, hushed, whispering in the silence.

He decided it was time to reconoiter a little. His wits were about as unscrambled as they were going to get, and he was as ready as he could be for whatever awaited his return to concsiousness. Naruto opened his eyes and braced himself for the worst.

He was lying on the deck of...well, something.

He readjusted his position slowly and cautiously to gain a greater range of vision. There didn't seem to be anyone else nearby. Naruto shifted a bit more and that was when he realized that he was wearing cuffs on both his wrists and ankles. The movement sent prickling sensations racing through his limbs; he'd laid still for so long they'd nearly fallen asleep. He looked around. He was lying with his feet toward the door; by craning his neck-an action that set off a stick of dynamite in the back of his skull-he could just see the compartment. It was small, with room only for him and one other.

They were facing a wall of iron bars, doubltessly a cage. Flanked by a pair of armored men, neither of whom paid him any heed. That was a mistake.

_"Sold!"_ A loud voice reverberated just beyond the outer wall; and it was with this that he finally realized where he was. The words _Auction House_ burned in the back of his mind like a brand, and it was all he could do to not lurch upright and free himself them and there. Instead he _relaxed_ letting himself slump back to the deck; even that action left him dizzy and nauseated. Tentatively, he tested the strength of his chain. Judging from the size and layout of the corridors that branched away from the cells, he could safely assume no one could see him, short of turning around.

Excellent.

Naruto flexed his wrists-and thanked kami for small blessings. These shackles _weren't_ made of seastone. And if they weren't seastone...they could be broken. He could feel the power thrumming beneath his skin, ready and willing to be called upon. And call upon it Naruto did.

Slowly, _subtly,_ so as not to be noticed by the guards, he began to heat the cuffs with electricity. It was slow going at first, but then he felt it; the metal began to warm beneath his wrists. Within a few seconds he would be free; free, to wreak havoc on the ones who dared to think they could sell him off like a piece of meat.

That was when he saw the other prisoner.

For a terrifying moment, her beauty struck him. She was a young, tall, well-proportioned young woman, with long blue hair and rich black eyes. And she saw him. Rather, she saw what he was doing-realized what he must be thinking. Beyond that he could see little of her from here; her long white dress tapering off into a yellow headpiece, holding a red gem-piece at the front. Wide, expressive eyes locked with his, those soft orbs issuing a silent plea as the cuffs began to glow white hot in the ensuing silence.

Naruto bit back a groan.

_Damn but he was a sucker for a pretty face._

An errant thought sent the temperature skyrocketing, reducing the cuffs to so much slag on both wrists and ankles. Naruto quietly glided them off his wrists, careful so as not to attract attention. He slunk toward the female prisoner and motioned for silence, touching a finger to hr elips. She nodded, a swift jerky bob that sent her hair swaying from side to side. Without so much as a backward glance, the blond lurched to his feet, kicking off the smoldering remains of the cuffs as he did so. They clattered loudly against the bars, drawing the attention of his captors.

"Excuse me gentlemen." he began pleasantly, stepping to the guards. "Might I have a word with you?"

"What in the-

They turned as one, just as Naruto phased _through_ the bars in a crackle of lightning, body rippling with his element. He took in their terrified expressions for a moment, absorbing their fear, reveling in it as they beheld his otherwordly form. Naruto reared his head back, grinning from ear to ear.

"What's the matter?" he asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

The guard on the right-alongside the left-had just begun to reach for his weapon when the lightning man reached for _him._

His fingers closed around their faces like a vice; interposing within their metal helms. One million volts of undiluted electricity coursed down his arms and into their armor, into the soft flesh beneath. One million volts of pure power poured through his palms, sending both men to their graves before they could so much as scream. He released them as one, in the time it took their bodies to fall, he'd already turned back toward the cage.

Naruto returned his attention the bars. A swift jerk of the wrist bent them outward; the steel shrieking in protest as it was sundered by his strength. He stepped through with a sigh, crackling with lightning as he took a tentative step toward the slave girl. She squeaked softly, but made no move to distance herself from him when he approached.

"What's your name?" Naruto found himself whispering.

"P-Pascia," she stammered out.

"Alright then, Pascia-san." Naruto spoke in soothing tones, careful not to startled them. "I'm going to take these cuffs off you now. After that, there's something I need you to do for me." He placed one hand against the foremost cuff then the other severing the chains between them. From there it was child's play to disarm the collar wrapped around her neck; a low dose of voltage scrambled the fuses, allowing him to remove it without harming the wide-eyed girl.

All of this happened in an instant, leaving her little time to formulate a reply. Finally, she spoke.

"Y-Yes?"

Naruto uttered but one word.

_"Run."_

Before she could say anything else he struck; shattering the wall at their backs with a deafening retort of thunder and lightning. Stone and plaster did not burst before the sudden blast; they evaporated. Naruto actually blinked, such was the force with which his element sundered the wall. And then there was light. Sweet, blessed-unbelievably bright-light. Sunlight spilled through the opening, heavenly radiance beckoning them onward and outward. The silence seemed to stretch between the two of them; Pascia stared at the sudden exit with large eyes, Naruto wore a smug smile of satisfaction.

_"Well, this is familiar."_

These were the words of Uzumaki Naruto as he beheld the may groves of Saboady Archipeligo. They were impossible not to recognize; those trees, those bubbles, he knew them anywhere. Wait a minute. He knew! _He remembered!_ A grin threatened to split his lips. He actually remembered something! So he _had_ been here before! But when? And with who? Any attempt to grasp the details on his part, failed spectacularly. Everything was still one big blue blur, his past and present so jumbled he couldn't make heads nor tails of anything. Damn that Kuma! What had he meant by "sealing memories", anyway?

"Go." He ushered Pascia to her feet.

"But what about-

The harsh clatter of boots resounded beyond the stage.

_"What's going on back there?!"_

"Go." He pushed her forward again; he wouldn't ask a second time. "Never be caught again."

"A-Alright."

She scrambled past without a word, pausing just long enough to deliver him a soft peck upon the cheek. And then she was gone, fleeing into the safety afforded by the many groves of Saboady. Naruto watched her for a moment_-still slightly flustered by the kiss-_waited until he deemed her out of harms way. She paused suddenly, just long enough to turn and wave.

"Arigatou!" her voice carried across the winds to him, elicting a slow blink.

"You're welcome!"

A ghost of a smile flitted across the blonde's face, pinching his whiskered cheeks. He waved back. He kept right on waving, until he was _truly certain_ she was out of danger this time. Was it so strange, that he wanted to follow her? Pascia was not unattractive, and she'd probably welcome his prescence. If he wanted to follow her he_ could. _With his ability, he could easily catch up to her-if he set out now. He could have a life here. Forget all about his past. Perhaps Kuma was right. Maybe his memories would return, when they were ready.

And maybe they wouldn't.

Maybe they were gone and he'd never remember who-or what-he was. Maybe he was meant to forget them, to move on. If so, he was wasting _the_ perfect chance to put his past behind him. And he could. Kami knew it was owed him, after all he'd been through. _Think of it, _he mused,_ you're looking at a new lease on life here. Whose to say you can't take it?_

Unbidden, he found himself taking a tentative step forward. A thorn of pride pricked him and held him back at the last instant. There were other slaves here, others who still needed to be freed. What kind of man would that make him if he turned his back on them just for the sake of pleasure? Naruto sighed, pulled himself back from the brink. No. He couldn't leave things unanswered. He just couldn't. In the end he dithered, watching Pascia disappear into the groves with a grateful wave.

_Sorry, Pascia._

Naruto flung a lone bolt towards the doors leading to the stage, embuing each with a thousand volts of electricity; superheating the handles themselves until they were white-hot to the touch. A chorus of screams were swift to greet him in recompense for his temerity. That would keep the riff-raff out for awhile.

"Aaaaah," he sighed to himself, forlorn. "I've really done it now."

**"So it would seem."**

Naruto started in surprise. He swiveled in place, turning his attention the far end of the back room. He'd thought himself alone. Apparently that wasn't the case. _There._ Peering across the room, he found himself gazing into the furthest cell from his impromptu door-the only occupied one, for that matter.

_Who in the-?_

"Did I startle you?"

He found himself gazng upon a tan, weathered-looking old man with long silver hair...and was that a giant behind him? Interestingly enough, both were devoid of their collars. When had that happened? And why hadn't he noticed? He was no slouch when it came to observation hak_i-one of the few things he could recall-_and yet even so, he hadn't sensed _eithier_ of them until the old man revealed himself. That in and of itself, was nearly enough to make Naruto anxious. That the man seemed genuinely _familiar_ left him downright agitated.

_Shit,_ Naruto wondered nervously as he watched the man behind bars. A thrill of fear ran its flighty fingers up his spine. _Just who the hell is this guy?_

As he looked on the former picked himself up, stepping up to the bars as though they were nonexistent. Several seconds later they weren't. As he looked on the giant reached past the old timer and and wrenched them open, allowing him to step through. Naruto had the strangest feeling the old fellow could've done that, himself. Half a heart beat later, and they were face to face. The old timer was the first to turn away, indicating the charred corpses of the guards with a wry smile.

"That's quite the intersting ability you have there, youngster."

Naruto frowned. This guy knew about the Goro Goro no mi? Just what else did he know? He didn't seem all that threatening; his loose white coat-slung over his shoulders-and coveralls certainly didn't suggest anything other than a humble life as a ship coater. That didn't mean Naruto didn't suspect him for being more than he let on,

"I could say the same for you_, jiji."_

That one earned him a laugh.

"An old man has to have his secrets."

Naruto continued to glower; the only concession he made was when the giant pulled himself through the cage to join them. He barely acknowledged the massive man. He had eyes only for the enigmatic elder standing in front of him. Somehow, he couldn't shake the feeling they'd met once before. Eventually, his agitation got the better of him.

"Alright, just who the _hell_ are you, old man?"

A tiny smile broke out on the old man's chiseled face, like a crack etching along a stone surface. He wasn't nearly as senile as he looked; there was a strange twinkle in those eyes of his. Indeed, there was more to him that met the eye. What that something was, Naruto knew not. Instead of badgering him with still more questions, he quietly waited for the old man's answer,

"I suppose I can tell you." he admitted. "Although I'm in a bit of a hurry. You may call me Rayleigh."

_Rayeligh?_

The name came with a searing spear of pain; it lanced through Naruto's mind, nearly driving him to his knees. Rayleigh. Just who was he-

A sudden crash from the stage drew his attention and suddenly the pain was gone. In its place, a searing rage burned.

It seemed the party had started without him.

"Well then, _Rayleigh-san,_ I'll be heading out first to free the others." Naruto fixed the mysterious man with a glare, daring him to object. "Unless you have any objections?"

Rayleigh raised his shoulders in a half-hearted shrug.

"As you wish...

Naruto didn't bother to listen to whatever else he had to say.

Liquid lightning boiled from his veins, sheathing him in otherwordly power. Muscles bulged and swelled in his neck; tightening the cords of his arms as his element truggled to escape his body. An escape it would sooon have. Very soon. Naruto turned to face the theater, the booted thud-thud-thud of footsteps and the clatter of armour, growing loud in his ears as he drew closer to the exit. He opened his fingers, snatching up a nearby hammer from a guard's belt. It wasn't all that impressive as weapons went: its metal stock a tad too short-barely large enough for his palm-its business end a stolid block of iron.

Locked within his fingers, however, it became a weapon of almighty destruction.

_"**Mjolnir**."_

Naruto named the hammer and the technique in the same instant. Then he swung, swung for the fences. The electrified hammer slammed into the wall with a resounding crack. For a moment the steel held, stubbornly refusing to give way. A tiny fracture broke out along its pristine face, a single, solitary a crack etching along the steel's surface. Naruto frowned. He struck again, and this time, held nothing back. He yelled his fury and swung for a second time, bringing his wrath to bear upon the wall with all the force of heaven.

_BA-KRAM!_

As luck would have it, the door chose that moment to burst open, spilling guards into the room. Naruto didn't even spare them a glance; he halted in mid-revolution and flung the hammer backwards, loosing it from his hand; an arrow from a bow. It blurred toward the hapless slavers like a thing _alive_ its searing arc splitting skulls and sundering skin in a single second. Naruto was mildly amused to find he could guide the hammer with his will alone and for a time, he did just that; toying with the guards, watching as they struggled impotently against the electrified steel.

Eventually, even that grew boring. He could understand how Enel felt; with this power, he was almost invicible. Nothing could touch him. So immersed was he within his own thoughts that he almost failed to notice the slaver slipping away, creeping up behind him. Almost, but not quite.

"Die, you damn pirate!"

The blond barely blinked when the blade bissected his body at the wait, leaving his legs to flop to the floor, his upper torso hanging harmlessly in the air. He didn't so much as bat an eyelash. Where once there might've been blood, dribbling onto the floor there was only the raw element of electricity to greet the fool's efforts. A crackle of lightning lashed out in recompense for the temerity, refleixive and unbidden. Its owner yelped as a series of sinister sparks coursed down the sword's length and into the hand that grasped the hilt; racing through his veins like wildfire.

He dropped the sword with a pained cry, clutching at his arm in agony.

"Oi oi oi oi, that wasn't very nice." Naruto sighed as his body reformed. "Did you really think that would kill me?" In a flash he had the man by the shoulder, holding him fast.

"M-Monster!" the slaver squealed!

Impossibly, Naruto's grin grew. Monster, eh? Ah, now there was a word he knew well.

"So I've been told. And what are you, who stands before me? A human? A dog? A monster?" He laughed; it was a deep, throaty sound. "No, you're neither; because you, my good man, are about to die."

Those who'd been lucky enough to survive the hammer's onslaught immediately found themselves wishing they hadn't. Indeed, Naruto could feel their fear as he turned in place, swiveled, bringing the full weight of his wrath to bear upon the hapless fool who'd first dared to cut him. He could've ended them in a thousand different ways, but he chose not to. Instead, he chose to make an example of this one.

"P-Please, don't_-ngyah!"_

He electrified the man's vocal cords, ending his words in a strangled gurgle.

Naruto raised his right hand and pointed with his index finger, pressing it against the man's head. A pinprick of brilliance gathered at the tip of the lone digit, swelling with sapphire, searing into the flesh of his forehead whilst the terrified slaver looked on. The man of lightning man offered a cruel smile and uttered but one word.

_"Byakurai."_

By all acounts it was a relatively painless death; by the time the white lightning erupted out the back of the man's skull, he was already gone. His body slumped to the floor, lifeless. One of the guards screamed like a little girl. Naruto didn't even bother to unleash a second _Byakurai _upon them, another arc of his arm sent the remaining guards to join their comrade in death. Still another reduced their corpses to so much ash before his eyes.

Then he glanced at his erstwhile weapon.

An errant thought returned the hammer to its master's hand. Naruto hefted the hammer with a grunt, appreciating its size and weight. _I think I'll hang onto this,_ he mused. _Never was the type to use a gun or a katana anyway...oi! _he started in surprise as his right hand grazed the business end of the hammer; his knees buckled!It felt as though the strength were being sapped from his very bones, leaving him helpless and weak. He tore his hand from the hammer at the last instant, flexing his fingers around the clothed shaft to regain feeling in them.

What luck!

_Seastone! _He swore in disbelief, his lips curling in a grin of almost childish delight. Of all the luck! He'd thought this was just an old hammer someone had thrown away. _Lucky! _He'd have a solid advantage against devil-fruit users with this. But in the meantime...

Naruto tore of a strip of his sleeve and secured it around the hammer's shaft, providing his fingers with a buffer between the stone of the sea and the short handle. He gave it an experimental swing and, satisfied by its weight, returned his attention to the wall, his features set in a stern scowl.

Rayleigh laughed.

"That expression suits you, boy."

Naruto frowned; he'd all but forgotten the old man during his rampage.

"What?"

"No, no, its nothing." The ship-coater couldn't quite keep the smile from his face.

Naruto said nothing more, but he struck like a serpent, yelling his fury and giving his body the sharp countertwist that made his swings so blindingly fast and powerful. Even Rayleigh, who was looking straight at him, barely saw the strike. Naruto's hammer, crushed the wall. _Crushed it backward._ There came a resounding clang as the hammer split steel in twine, smashing through it in an explosion of thunder. Naruto glanced back at his handiwork, nodded, and stepped through the hole he'd made...

...and into chaos.

"What's this?" Rayleigh blinked, stepping up beside him. "Look's like everybody's watching us."

"No, really?" Naruto sweadropped as he brushed some dust off of his chest. "Never would have guessed." For the first time since waking on Thriller Bark, he regretted his lack of clothing. His brief battle with Oars had left him all but barechested. Not only had it warranted uneccessary_-not to mention undesirable-_attention, but his bandages were beginning to harden thanks in no small part to the crusted blood he'd gained during his efforts back in Moria's realm. A small frown adjourned his features as he shouldered his hammer, careul to ensure it was the _shaft_ that touched his neck, and not the weapon itself.

Coupled with his gaudy trousers and the bandana he'd draped over his bright blond hair, their arrival made for a rather humorous scene. An old geezer, a half-naked youth, and a giant, subsuquently making their grand appearance on stage, in full view of the guards and the jailers. Rayleigh was of course, completely relaxed, much to Naruto's charign. _Damn but the old coot really is keeping his cool, _he mused.

Then he found a familair face amongst the rookies. A face wearing a strawhat.

"Isn't that...?"

"If it isn't Hacchi!" Rayleigh exclaimed suddenly, cutting him off and drawing the blonde's attention in the same instant. "It's been awhile, what are you doing in this place?" Immediately thereafter, his smile withered; drying up into a concerned but all the same compassionate frown. Naruto took note of it as well. A strange tanuki creature was frantically wrapping the fishman in gauze; because he was wounded. In the brief span of inattention that it took him to notice this, Rayleigh finally seemed to come around to the here and now.

"Hacchi...

"How did you get those wounds?" He paused, waving the fishman's words away. "No, no, you don't have to speak." Slowly, stroking his beard, his gaze took in the ruined Auction House. It lingered upon Camie, glanced over the inert Tenryubito, and finally, settled upon the pirates who appeared to still be in the midst of a conflict with the guards. Everyone had fallen silent and Naruto knew damned well as the old man that the impasse created by their arrival would not last much longer.

_"So that's what happened."_ Rayleigh suddenly smacked a fist into an empty palm. "Alright then, I understand the situation." Suddenly, and without warning his gaze locked upon the guards. "Geez, you sure had a hard time, Hacchi." Now it was the boy with the strawhat who found himself bearing the brunt of the Dark King's gaze. "So you were the guys who helped him?"

Naruto grimaced; because his haki was screaming a warning. Uh-oh.

_"Well then..._

Naruto _felt_ the willpower before any semblance of it manifested. Even then at point blank range, he almost stumbled from the force of the man's haki. Grimacing against the powerful surge, the room swam before his eyes for a moment; then he drove the haze from his vision. The guards and jailers were not nearly as strong-willed; neither did they have the necessary fortitude to stand up to such a massive burst of ambition. Nigh but undectable, it emerged as a small ripple; spreading across the stands in an overflowing wave that engulfed everyone and everything that existed before Rayleigh's gaze.

Mouths foamed and eyes rolled back; those without the will to stand before the man's haki crashed into the stands, their weak wills sent into swift slumber.

Interestingly enough, none of the pirates seemed to be affected. Naruto allowed his gaze to roam over them, this gallery of rogues, each of whom stared back at him in turn. Not that he blamed them. He cut quite the imposing figure with his hammer, wreathed in lightning as he was. A flicker of motion caught his gaze, stirring at his feet.

What in the?

_Caimie's_ head broke the surface of her tank. She breathed shallowly, the feeling of raw terror giving way to an unsettling numbness as she beheld the scene laid before her vry eyes. Voices drifted in and out of her ear causing her to twitch and try to focus on what was happening to her. The voices sounded calm and so very pleasant. Somehow, she found herself breathless; the word hitching in her throat as she beheld the man with bright, electric blond hair. Lightning crackled from him like a thing alive, arcing ever more violently as he turned his attention to the celestial dragon on the floor.

A scowl twisted his lips.

He appeared to be under a lot of duress; as though he would lash out at anyone given the slightest provocation.

At anyone...

_"A tenryubito, eh?"_

* * *

><p>Naruto's temples were throbbing again. It had started the moment he set foot upon the stage, but until recently, it had been somewhat manageable. Until he laid eyes upon the prone form of Saint Shaulia, lying at his feet. <em>Hate.<em> He couldn't find another word for it. His entire being was suddenly brimming with the unquenchable desire to end this woman, this celestial dragon; this wretch who thought she could buy and sell people as though they were naught but pieces of meat.

And so he acted upon it.

_"A tenryubito, eh?"_

Naruto gnashed his molars together, a stray spark slipping through his teeth. Before anyone could stop him he reached down for Saint Shaulia, his fingers locking around her throat like a vice. He hoisted her high, then higher, and higher still, dangling her off the ground and in the air as though she weighed no more than a child. It didn't matter to him if the woman was unconscious, if she couldn't defend herself. All that mattered was thus: she was here. He was here. And she was going to die.

Because he willed it.

There came a terrib _popping _sound as the protective bubble burst; then the tenyrubito's skin began to boil. Naruto held her aloft, sneering as sparks scrawled across her flesh and lit her aflame from within; roasting out her internal organs from the inside. In the time that it took for Shaulia to stir, she was already aflame. By then her body was already burning, much to the dismay and charign of all those present. Ferverish fingers tried to claw at his wrist, only to phase harmlessly through the element there.

Naruto didn't care. He felt good. It felt so damnably _good_ to end the life of a hated _tenryubito, _his emotions ruled him now and he was powerless in their thrall. There could be no explaining it; in this moment he was all but wrath incarnate, come to wreak havoc on those who had wronged him. Because the Celestial Dragons had wronged him. He knew not how nor why nor even when, only that they had. When he tried to grasp at that memory it slippped through his fingers like flame; stoking his rage to new heights.

_"One million volts."_ he hissed, voice black as pitch. _"Vari."_

Shaulia tried to scream; all that emerged was a rasping death rattle as lightning engulfed her quivering frame, casting the auction house all all those within in a ghastly pallor. And then it was done. Smoke wafted forth from every orifice Shaulia had to offer, eyes, ears, nose and mouth. As if from a distance, he thought he heard someone whisper:

"That terrifying power again...

Naruto cast Shaulia's smoldering form down without so much as a second glance, his fingers pointed into an edge, wreathed in electricity. Before her body could touch the floor he thrust them forward-that blade of pure thunder-piercing her chest with a single jab, plunging it to the wrist. Seconds later, he extricated his bloodied palm.

_"Raikiri."_ he decreed calmly, plucking her stillbeating heart from her chest as though it were naught but an errant baubble. He held it there a moment, contemplating the organ as he cradled it in the palm of his hand to himself.

Then he crushed it between his fingers. Gore spattered in every direction, smoldering away as it touched his seething form.

"Wasn't that a tad excessive?" Rayleigh frowned down at the charred corpsed that had once been Saint Shaulia.

Naruto snorted.

"Don't question me, old man."

Satisfied, he finally returned his attention to the horde of pirates staring down at him.

"AH!" The boy with the strawhat exclaimed loudly, shattering the impasse. "It's earlobes!"

Naruto facevaulted.

_"Who the hell are you calling earlobes?!"_

"That isn't him, baka!" An orange-haired girl exclaimed, dealing the rubberman a fearsome blow. "See!" She thrust a finger at Naruto. "Look closely! They're not the same! He has whiskers! And he's shorter! But...

...just who is he?" nine voices-each of strawhats-asked in unison.

Those dark, threatening eyes watched Naruto for a moment longer. His confusion only grew.

Naruto blinked, once, twice, thrice, his eyelids fluttering open and shut with all the rapidity of a hummingbird's wingspan. It seemed he'd walked right into the thick of things. But one question dangled at the precipiece of his mind, only a single burning inquiry that demanded to be answered.

"I should be asking that question." he frowned. "Oi, just...

_"Who the hell are you guys?"_

**A/N: FWAH! Suuuuch a long chapter! My eyes are KILLING ME! Although, being a skeleton...I HAVE NO EYES! Naruto's made landfall! Well, he did ask to be sent somewhere warm now, didn't he? It seems he's destines to meet the Strawhats after all! ****YOHO! ****Oh and please don't forget to review until my ears fall off. Although being a skeleton...I have no ears to listen with! YOHOHOHOHO! SKUUUUUULLL JOOOOOKE! **

**As I said, I worked uber hard on this chapter and I'm sure you can all tell whats coming next! Naruto vs Kizaru! I really hope you guys and gals liked it! Naruto's laid waste to the Auction House in spectacular fashion as only a god can! AND HE'S FINALLY MET THE STRAWHATS! Look forward to the next chapter! It's gonna be a looong one! Look forward to it, ya know!**

**S****o...in the immortal words of Atlas...**

**...Review, would you kindly? **

**R&R! =D**


	5. Godlike III

**A/N: YOHO! Its been two long years since I've touched this story, but here I am again! I've made a pledge to update all my One Piece stories post haste, although I will admit, most of my focus has been on Prince of Darkness at the moment. Feel free to give it a read sometime! And here we are at last! Finally an update! I'm sure all of you have been wondering where Naruto would land after Kuma launched him. Well, I think it's high time we found out.**

**...let the long awaited rebirth of this story begin! Onward with Legacy of a God! Apologies if this chapter is short!**

_"Ya know...I wonder which is faster, Kizaru-san? Light...**or lightning?!"**_

_~Naruto._

**Godlike III**

_"Rubberband of Dooooooom!"_

Naruto growled as Usopp's rubberband struck him in the back of the head. It didn't so much hurt as it did sting; anger, as it did annoy. He rounded on the marksman with a snarl, palms cracking with electricty, fingers curling in a dire promise. Literary trop aside...he was going to fry this little pipsqueak!

"What the hell was that for?!"

"Yiiiiiiiiii!" The sniper yelped, cowering behind his captain. "It _is _him! Get 'em, Luffy!"

Naruto huffed in exasperation, struggling to understand just why the band of pirates were regarding him with such fear and trepidations. It was almost as if they recognized him somehow. Impossible! That thought was soon dismissed however when Roranora Zoro unsheathed a sword and stepped forward to address him.

"Oi, teme." he demanded to know. "Who the hell're you?"

"That's my line!" The god-like man snapped back. "Just who the hell are you guys?!"

"Nanda?" Once more the boy with the strawhat exclaimed loudly, shattering the impasse. "Isn't this earlobes?"

Naruto facevaulted.

_"Who the hell are you calling earlobes again?!"_

"I already told you that isn't him, baka!" An orange-haired girl exclaimed, dealing the rubberman a fearsome blow. "See!" She thrust a finger at Naruto, indicating the baffled blonde. "Look closely this time! They're not the same! They don't even have the same face! He's different! But...

...just who is he?" Zoro finished, his words a threatening growl. Despite himself, Naruto smiled.

"Whaddya gonna do, swordsman?" he challenged. "Cut me?" Even without his memories he knew there was no chance in hell anyone in this room-save Rayleigh-could harm him. Oh, they were each impressive pirate in their own right, but they lacked the willpower to use haki. Perhaps a few a years of training might improve their chances. But for now...

Zoro's left eye twitched, confirming his suspicions.

"You can't, can you?" Naruto laughed. "Mah, it doesn't matter, I suppose. I'm not you're enemy. As to who I am...nah." he shook his head curtly, dismissing their curiosity. "Don't much feel like telling you that. Perhaps when I get to know ya better? Whaddya say eh, ladies?" He let his gaze drift over Nami and Robin in unspoken question and the latter lingered. Those dark, threatening eyes watched Naruto for a moment longer before finally turning aside. The blonde's amusement only grew. Feisty, eh? Well, at lest he remembered having a thing for women like that...

Naruto blinked, once, twice, thrice, his eyelids fluttering open and shut with all the rapidity of a hummingbird's wingspan. It seemed he'd walked right into the thick of things. But one question dangled at the precipiece of his mind, only a single burning inquiry that demanded to be answered.

"Oi, blondie!"

"You wanna-

"I'll have to decline." Brusque as ever, Naruto cut him off curtly. "But thanks for the offer."

"Hey!" Luffy protested! "I haven't even said anything yet! How did you know what I was gonna say?"

'"You strike me as the type to drag people into your crew." Naruto deadpanned. "As I don't even know your name, how could I possibly aqcueise your request-

"The name's Luffy!"

...Naruto." he replied at last, the slightest of smiles tugging at his lips.

"So do you wanna-

Naruto ignored the inquiry. Instead, he flung back his hood, exposing his face to the sunlight and the world once more. Resolutely, he stalked after Eustass and Trafalgar, making no excuse toward his obvious haste. Luffy scowled for a moment before he too, hastened toward the exit. How rude! How did that guy know what he was going to say, anyway? Was he telepathic or something?

"No," Naruto answered from somewhere ahead of him. "You're just ridiculously easy to read, that's all."

Luffy slowed for a moment, blinking owlishly. That settled it!

He was _so _gonna make his guy his nakama.

* * *

><p>Outside the acution houe, the firing squad inexplicably stiffened.<p>

Three...no, _four_ shadows were coming out. _Outside._ And they brought with them a racket straight out of hell. They were arguing, bickering, quarreling amongst themselves, even as they emerged from the relative safety of the Human Auction house and into broad daylight. In full view of the cannons, these pirates made absolutely no distinction between friend and foe. Nay, for three of them were far too busy bickering, and the fourth, well, the fourth was trying_-unsuccessfully-_to quell his companions.

This, was, roughly, what the quartet sounded like:

"Like I said, I won't let you guys hog all the fun!"

"Shut up...

"I said I'll do it myself!"

"Stop bickering already!"

"Really?"

"Shut up! Just shut up, you three!"

"You're so noisy...

"What did you say!"

"Like I said, leave this to me!"

"No! I'll do it!"

"Don't order me around."

"You don't get it, do you?"

"You're the one who doesn't get it!"

"All right," Being the first one to step into full view, Monkey D. Luffy cracked his knuckles. "You guys, stand back." Naturally this elicited a less than favorable response from those standing nearby. It was one of outright if not immediatem hostility from two of its intended recipients. The third slapped a hand to his forehead in sheer exasperation. Truly, how was it possible for one man to be so incredibly dense? And to think, he'd almost considered actually joining his crew for a second back there!

"Hey, _are you listening to me?"_ Eustass glowered. "I said that _you_ should stay away!"

"Try to give me one more order," Trafalgar Law growled, "And I'll take yout out first, Eustass!"

Naruto simply sweatdropped.

_'Oi, oi, do you not see the marines in front of us?_

"Take aim!" The harsh clacking of machinery drew his attention back to the defensive perimeter the marines had formed. "Three of them are captains! They each have bounties well over one hundred million!" Then they paused, recognizing that there was a fourth amongst them, one whose face held no such wanted poster. As such, it was not so easily recognizeable.

"And that other one...

"Yo." Naruto swiftly raised a hand in greeting, entertaining the thin hope that he could somehow emerge from the ensuing conflagration unscathed. "I'm not in the mood for this, so if ya'll would just surrender...

"He's just a low leve." A marine remarked. "Never heard of him."

Naruto bristled.

"Wanna say that again, cheeky dickwaffle?" he raised a hand, fingers crackling with electricity. "Cause if ya do...I might have ta char ya a little...

The marine captain twitched angrily. Who did these fools think they were?! They were the Navy! They would never back down from a challenge, no matter how daunting it might be! Even when face with four pirates of such high calibre! Snarlign, he thrust a hand forward and gave the command.

**"FIRE!"**

"Fine be me." The deadpan was barely concealed as the bullets streaked towards them. Naruto stood there, still as a god, his form rippling as the bullets phased through him to strike the auction house at their backs. A murmur of surprise rose from the men; had he dodged their shots somehow?

"My turn." Naruto whispered; and a snarl tore through the atmosphere.

It was primal agony, torn from that individual bit of lightning that hissed and spat within his palm. It was the most horrible thing you would ever hear, and they all recognized it for what it was: the sound of pure and absolute scorn. And then it escalated up the scale to a war cry of undiluted fury. Whatever it was left the marines disoriented, confused, unable to stand. And that was before they realized it was not the sound of screams; but of laughter.

Uzumaki Naruto was laughing.

He held his hand aloft, for all the world to see, grinning all the while. An hellish light drifted across the grove, the ensuing thunderclap that heralded its arrival serving to both blind and stun the enemy forces that dared to surround them. By the time their sights cleared, Naruto held a small spiral in his palm. The sphere within his hand abruptly began to contract; spiraling inward, reducing itself to a speck of infinitismal proportions. He wrapped his fingers tight around it, forming a fist.

"Hang on!" One of the marines shouted! "He's up to something!"

Naruto clucked softly to himself.

_'You have no idea.'_

The sphere shrank to a pinpoint of brilliance in his palm.

**"Raikoho."**

Tongues of light and lightning lanced outward with a deafening snap-crack, deafening all those present, blinding them with light. Naruto cupped it in the palm of his hand for a long moment, contemplating it. Then, with a maddened cackle, he flung it forwarrd. When at last the blinding brilliance cleared, only a handful of marines remained, and those had been the lucky few to escape the crater of destruction. Their unlikely survival was amusing, especially considering most of them looked about ready to piss themselves.

"Bow before your god, mortals!" Naruto found himself laughing, delighting in their terrified expressions. "For I am lightning!" A crackle of thunder ripped through the groves, punctuating his statement.

_"Fuck."_ Eustass spat aside at the sight. "The kid's a _Logia."_

"You are correct, sir!" For some reason or another, Naruto suddenly found that statment to be the most amusing by far. It was only fitting that these fools recognize the almighty powers of a god...wait? Where had that thought come from? Odd. Shaking himself with a small effort, he turned to bring his power to bear upon the enemy once more.

Only to find that all the marines were fleeing.

"Well, that's no fun." he sulked. "I was just getting warmed up_...and you don't get to run after insulting me!"_ Flinging himself after them with a roar of abn, he gave no thought to Luffy or the others; there was only the chase, only the kill! Theirs would not be an easy death, but a painful one!

Time itself seemed to blur as he hunted them down to the last; until only one remained. The man was huddled up against a mangrove, clutching at his rifle as though it would somehow save him; gibbering incoherently as his executioner trekked after him. A vile smile wreathed Naruto's face.

"Too easy." scoffed the blonde, demeaning towards the sole remaining soldier. "You're pathetic. I wasn't even trying to catch you...

"Were you nooo~ooow?" A slow, drawling voice inquired.

Naruto had just enough time to bristle before a streak of light interposed itself between him and the remaining marines. Clad in a pinstripe yellow suit and an admiral's jacket, her seemed to tower over them all; a giant amongst men. Despite himself, Naruto froze. He knew this man. Remembered him. And the sight of him made his very blood turn to ice water in his veins. There could be no mistaking him. Not his face, nor the way he had spoken just now. This was...this...was...

"Ara? Looooooong time no see, Naruto-kun."

Naruto gulped.

_Kizaru!_

* * *

><p><strong>AN: FWAH! Suuuuch a long chapter! My eyes are KILLING ME! Although, being a skeleton...I HAVE NO EYES! Naruto's made landfall! Well, he did ask to be sent somewhere warm now, didn't he? It seems he's destines to meet the Strawhats after all! ****YOHO! ****Oh and please don't forget to review until my ears fall off. Although being a skeleton...I have no ears to listen with! YOHOHOHOHO! SKUUUUUULLL JOOOOOKE! **

**As I said, I worked uber hard on this chapter and I'm sure you can all tell whats coming next! Naruto vs Kizaru! The ol' admiral popped up early this time due to Naruto's actions in Thriller Bark! I think this certainly changes things! And on that note, I really hope you guys and gals liked it! Naruto's laid waste to the Auction House in spectacular fashion as only a god can! AND HE'S FINALLY ABOUT TO THROW DOWN THE GAUNTLET! Look forward to the next chapter! It's gonna be a looong one! Look forward to it, ya know!**

**S****o...in the immortal words of Atlas...**

**...Review, would you kindly? And of course, enjoy the preview!**

**(Preview)**

_Ba-kram!_

_For the first time in nearly a decade, Borsalino tasted blood in his mouth. He paused, baffled, raising his heel, taking it away from Zoro's head. What was that just now? He glanced around the clearing, searching for the perepatrator: each of the Strawhats seemed to be equally perplexed. And then it hit him again! __It was an acrid, flinty taste, this blood, one he was not unused to. What surprised him was that he'd been struck. Even as he contemplated this another solid blow rained down on his head-weakening him and all but threatening to shatter his skull._

_Finally he caught sight of it; a blur of electric blue that slowly dissolved into the shape of a man. A man with blode hair._

_Naruto brought Mjolnir around full circle, brandishing the short hammer like a club. And then just as suddenly, he jammed it into his belt._

_"Moshi moshi!" he grinned a megawatte grin that somehow held no mirth whatsover. "Might you be Kizaru-kun by any chance?"_

_"Excuse me?" Kizaru blinked, thunderstruck. Who was this crazy kid?!_

_"Aha! I'll take that as a yes!"_

_Naruto placed his hands together, creating a harsh glow of light from between his fingers. He bent the light between his palms, forcing it into the shape he so desired. The technique was recent, and one he had little to no control over. His element was lightning, even so, he could feel his palms begining to burn as the cradled the gleaming energy within. His visage pinched in concentration, brow furrowed in exasperation, then elation, Naruto opened his fingers to reveal his creation._

_"Lanza del Relámpago!"_

_He swiftly separated his hands and created a lance as the distance between his palms grew. His right fist grasped at one side of the spear and he swung back with it, his eyes looking into the face of his opponent. Without so much as a word, Naruto's weapon roared forward, demolishing Kizaru's entire lower body as he followed through with the slice. He came back around quickly, releasing his improvised grip upon the old admiral's neck before completely disintegrating the rest of his enemy with the lance of lightning._

_He watched in silent satisfaction as Borsalino's remains fluttered down like ashes to the grove below. He had absolutely no idea if the admiral was going to come back from that one._

_"Why are you still here?!" he barked at the Strawhats. "You need to leave! Now! Before-_

_"That wasn't baaaa~aaad."_

_Fuck!_

_His body jerked aside, dissolving even as the admiral's kick phased harmlessly through him. The same could not be said of the next kick. Now it was Naruto's turn to feel pain, to taste blood in his mouth as the brilliant and fast kick slammed into his solar plexus and shattered three ribs. The impact alone launched him across the grove; his back greeted tree after tree before he finally righted himself. An eyeblink was all it took for him to recover, a crackle of lightning, and he stood across from the admiral once more._

_"That surpriiiiised me." Kizaru drawled. "Looks like you're a logia too, neh?"_

_Naruto cracked his neck and afforded the admiral a bloodthirsty grin._

_"Ya know...I wonder which is faster, Kizaru-san? Light...**or lightning?!"**_

_Light and lightning; each dissolved into their natural element and surged forward to collide with the other. Many would say that the whole of Saboady Archipeligo trembled that day; others would claim that the heavens themselves had spoken; and still others would claim that armageddon itself had come, that the world was finally at its ends. Many might claim to have witnessed the spectacle firsthand, to have seen the clash between Uzumaki Naruto and Admiral Kizaru, the battle of these twin titans._

_And there would be only one victor._

**R&R! =D**


	6. Clash

**A/N: Alright ladies and gentlmen, good news and bad news. Good news first. I'm fresh out of ANOTHER surgery-hurts like hell, and I broke up with my girl. ON VALENTINES DAY. I just couldn't stand to be with her anymore after the way she'd treated me. Alas, my health is still in the red, and the docs say it ain't looking good. So...I just...wanted to let you all know about this. Somehow. Just in case death has plans to take me out of this sickly body of mine...hopefully it won't!**

**Anywho, I managed to put this up here at points between the forced anesthetic. Bad news is I still have more surgeries ahead. It's been great, guys. Really. ****I'm hanging tough though, despite everything life is throwing at me. Despite all that's happening, I don't intend to die quietly in a bed somewhere! On another note**...

**...here we go!**

_"Capture me? You'll have ta kill me first!"_

_~?_

**Clash**

_"You're deaaa~aaaaad."_

These were the words of one Admiral Kizaru as he prepared to bring his heel down_ -the limb engulfed in golden light -_upon the head of one Roronoa Zoro. He'd known going out that the Strawhat crew were every bit as dangerous as Sengoku had claimed, but this? Striking a Tenryubito in plain view of the marines? That really was foolish. It was almost as if they _wanted_ to be killed. Still, they'd managed to destroy a Pacifista before he and Sentomaru arrived, a feat few could speak of. He supposed that earned them a quick death, at the very least. Having already obliged one of the Strawhats- a man who held a _distuuurbing_ resemblance to his former student-Borsalino had set upon the others in short order. This was eaaaaaaasy. Or so he thought.

_Ba-kram!_

For the first time in nearly a decade, Borsalino tasted blood in his mouth. Then he felt himself stagger, the pinprick of light he'd been preparing to bring down on Roronoa's head now rocketing off to obliterate a nearby mangrove, subsuming it in a shroud of fire and flame. It was a strange sensation-this pain-all things considered. He hadn't felt agony like this since his rookie days with Zephyr-sensei. _Mind-numbing_ bash your skull in pain-the kind that came from only one of two things; neither of which were all that pleasant to think of. Haki or Seastone. And since he hadn't sensed the former...

"Blondie-ossan!" Luffy screamed!

_'Who is he talking to?'_ Kizaru's head snapped around just in time to catch a departing snap of static; a crackle of electricty-an azure streak served only to distract him from the real threat. From its true victim. He swept around but too late, the phenomenon was already past him, seeking not the admiral's demise, but the next best thing.

The weakest link in the chain.

_"Burn_, you son of a bitch." Borsalino had just enough time to hear those words _-to register their meaning-_ before a bolt of lightning ripped through the sanctity of the grove. Saboady shrieked as the brilliant blue bleam blasted down through her treetops, its aim unerring and true. Kizaru flickered away, but he was not the target. Not a split second later, heaven's wrath, found its mark. Sentomaru. The large man didn't even have time to cry out before he turned to ash, the cinders of his form blown away like dust on the wind. Just like that, he was gone.

For the first time since he'd come to Saboady, Kizaru's face lost its ever-present smile. Well this certainly wouldn't do. He couldn't let his subourdinates be slain on his watch now, could he?

"Hmmmm?"

He paused, baffled by this sudden occurrence, raising his heel, taking it away from Zoro's head; allowing Robin to tug her crewmate to safety. Kizaru wasn't focused on that; his attention remained fixated upon that odd bolt of lightning that continued to course in and out of his vision.

What was it? Who was responsible for slaying Sentomaru? For bringing him down low? Questions buzzed like flies through his head. Alas, no answers were to be found. He glanced around the clearing, searching for this perepatrator: each of the Strawhats seemed to be equally perplexed. It couldn't have been one of them. Or could it? That Monkey D. Luffy _was _the grandson of Garp after all; he might've been the one to strike him just now...but the look of shock on the young pirate's face betrayed any sense of impending action. No,it hadn't been him. But if not Mugiwara, then wh-

_Zing!_

And then it hit him _again!_ A mighty and powerful blow came crashing down from the heavens, bringing with it an impending sense of overwhelming weakness, leaving was an acrid, flinty taste in his mouth, his blood, one he was not unused to. What surprised him was that he'd been struck twice now, all without catching sight of his opponent. Even as he contemplated this a third and final blow rained down on his head from above-weakening him still, all but threatening to shatter his skull. Enough was enough. He would find this foe, kick his head in, and be done with-

There!

Whirling Kiszaru lashed out, his heel sweeping harmlessly through the departing energy.

Finally he caught sight of it then; an electric blue blur that skittered away from him the moment he laid eyes on it. Kizaru raised his guard, ready to deflect his unseen attack if he decided to strike again. But they didn't, instead, that blue blur slowly resolved into a humanoid shape, assuming the form and likeness of a man. But not just any man. A man with bedreaggled blonde hair, blue eyes, and whiskered cheeks. A man that he had thought to be long dead; indeed, he'd supposdely dealt a death blow to him only moments before.

Uzumaki Naruto rose from his ninjasque crouch and rought _Mjolnir_ around full circle, brandishing the bloody seastone weapon like a prized scepter rather than the stout hammer that it was. His appearance was nothing short of mystifying; during his brief abscence from the battle, he seemed to have somehow acquired a much-needed change of attire. His once shirtless torso now partially eclipse by a long, flowing jacket, the kind that the Admiral's themselves wore. But whereas Kizaru's was white, Naruto's was a striking shade of sapphire, the blue-black coattails of his newfound coat outdone only by the knives-sheathed round his crimson vest, and themultiple pistols wreathing his hips and onyx slaks. Apparently he'd taken the opportunity to arm himself well since they'd last met. To the teeth!

"Moshi moshi!" he grinned a megawatt grin that held absolutely no mirth whatsover. "Been awhile, hasn't it...sensei?"

_"Excuse me?"_ Kizaru blinked, thunderstruck, the blood draining from his face. Naruto? How was he here? More importantly, how was he still alive?

He'd always known Naruto to be stubborn. It was in his very nature, what had made him take the boy under his wing in the first place all those years ago. Naruto proved himself to be an admiral marine, fiercely loyal in his belief of justice, until that fateful day. Kizaru had made the morbid mistake of bringing the boy with him during what did later shake the the world to its very foundations. The Buster Call upon Ohara. In hindsight he probably shouldn't have done thatproved most unwise, but hey, he'd thought the kid could handle it. He'd been wrong.

Terribly, horribly wrong.

Naruto had tried to kill Akainu that day for destroying an escaping ship-_a vessel full of women and children, and no archaelogists whatsoever-_and if that weren't foolish enough, the then vice-admiral had killed the blond in self defense and tossed his body overboard. Everyone had thought that was the end of the promising young cadet. But no longer.

Somehow, they'd even botched that. Naruto was alive and well, here in the form of this young man, brimming with killer intent. More importantly, he was a pirate. He forgotten Ohara-forgotten just about everything it seemed, of his history with the marines. All his skills remained, but, clearly any other remnant of his past was completely obliterated. But none of that mattered now. Back at the auction house, when he'd still worn the hood over his head, Kizaru had mistaken him for just another pirate, and tried to put him down the only way he knew how. With a single kick to the head. Once again, something had gone wrong.

This...even someone like Naruto shouldn't be breathing after that last kick, let along standing. And yet...

Was it so wrong that a part of this old man felt _proud?_

"Aha! I'll take that as a yes!"

Kizaru regarded his former student warily; if those sparks coursing through his frame were any indication, his old protege had done more than just growing up since they'd last met. He'd eaten a fruit, he realized with a small pang of regret; the softest touch of nostalgia momentarily overcoming his indignation. Naruto had loved to swim when he was younger. It was a simple luxury, one Borsalino had always envied his student. In that at least, they were now the same. But everything else was so different. They stood on opposite ends of the spectrum, black and white, neither willing to yield. The Mugiwara's were completely forgotten, left standing on the sidelines, helpless to run, to fight, or to flee; unable to do anything but watch as master and student faced off.

"Sooooo, you remember me, then?" Kizaru spoke at last, struggling to keep his voice under rigid control. Naruto might be his enemy now, but _damn he was just so proud of him._ Naruto had always been something of a prodigy, but he'd never really had any friends. Rebelled constantly against Akainu and the others yes, but stand up against him, Kizaru, directly? Never! It had been ages since he'd last seen his defiant smirk-that silent yet subtle challenge to authority that had driven Sengoku mad on more than one occassion. In a way, the boy was the closest thing he had to a son.

"Bits and pieces." the blond conceded with a half-hearted shrug. "Seems you taught me a few things back in the day. Doesn't matter. I met an interesting fellow while I was out-lent me this outfit and everything. Said I could keep it if I kicked yer ass. The Dark King sends his regards!" Impossibly, his grin grew. "Now, you're in my way, and I'm about to blow through you!"

Naruto placed his hands together, creating a harsh glow of light from between his fingers. He bent the light between his palms, forcing it into the shape he so desired. The technique was recent, and one he had little to no control over. His element was lightning, even so, he could feel his palms begining to burn as the cradled the gleaming energy within. His visage pinched in concentration, brow furrowed in exasperation, then elation, the electirc man opened his fingers to reveal his latest creation.

_"Lanza del Relámpago!"_

He swiftly separated his hands and created a lance as the distance between his palms grew. His right fist grasped at one side of the spear and he swung back with it, his eyes looking into the face of his opponent. Without so much as a word, Naruto's weapon roared forward, demolishing Kizaru's entire lower body as he followed through with the slice. He came back around quickly, releasing his improvised grip upon the old admiral's neck before completely disintegrating the rest of his enemy with the lance of lightning.

He watched in silent satisfaction as Borsalino's remains fluttered down like ashes to the grove below. He had absolutely no idea if the admiral was going to come back from that one. His memories had begun to return a bit after that brain-jarring kick, but he'd still no idea of the limits when it came to a Logia. There was a silence as his still, dead-hopefully-remains fluttered about.

"Why are you still here?!" he barked at the still-unmoving Strawhats. "You need to leave! Now! Before-

"Behind you!"

Nami's shriek was the only warning he had before blinding light erupted in his peripheals.

"That wasn't baaaa~aaad."

Fuck!

His body jerked aside, dissolving even as the admiral's kick phased harmlessly through him. The same could not be said of the next kick. Now it was Naruto's turn to feel pain, to taste blood in his mouth as the brilliant and fast kick slammed into his solar plexus and shattered three ribs. The impact alone launched him across the grove; his back greeted tree after tree before he finally righted himself and even then, his momentum did him no small disservice, further distancing him from the Strawhats and their plight. He only prayed that Kizaru would be intent to follow.

_'But for now, I need to do something about this..._

He reached outwards, seeking something-anything to slow his terminal velocity and finding none. Trees shattered at his passing, buildings burst before his body as he hurtled through the lawless grove. The occacsional passerby did nothing more than gawp as this streak of azure roared past them; under any other circumstance, Naruto would've found their fishlike expressions to be rather humorous. As it were, he could only mutter a few profanities beneath his breath whilst he shot past.

"Aha!"

At last he managed to halt his inexorable streak, steadying himself by grabbing onto a branch, nearly tearing the mighty bough from the trunk as he swung past. The branch bent backwards within that sudden swing of momentum, his body momentarily frozen somewhere between stillness and motion as he hung there. Then the moment ended and the tree snapped forward again-flinging him to the floor of the mangroves. He alighted effortlessly upon the ruins of an overturned building, its stone features battered and worn, crumbling beneath his boots. Whomever had lived here before had long since cleared out ages ago.

_'Where the hell did that bastard kick me...ah, christ.'_

He cringed when he saw the streak of destruction his departure had created. A black swathe of earth and upturned roots stretched as far as the human eye could see, a striking abscence of life standing in cold, glaring testimony to the destruction he'd unintentionallly caused during his retreat._ Damn._ Naruto knew had yet to master this power; he'd dissolved on reflex the moment he'd been struck, and this was what he'd wrought. It was...terrifying.

Peering down at his still-crackling hands he experienced something of an epiphany, it was...easy to be afraid of his powers and the gifts he'd been given. All too easy to see himself as Enel had; a God amongst mortals, fit to take and give as he pleased. Ha! More like a devil. Perhaps that was fruit users were; damned to hell from the moment they took that first bite-

_"Yata no Kagami."_

Naruto frowned and shielded his face with an arm, his contemplation broken as a bolt of light bounced off a nearby mangrove, ricocethed to another, then rebounded to his location. It took more than a small effort on his part to laugh when the lanky admiral resolved into existence before him, flecks of golden brilliance gathering to assume his shape and form before his very eyes. In reality, he wanted nothing more than to escape; facing an admiral took more guts than he would've liked to admit. But courageous or no, he'd taken his stand when he'd rescued Roronoa from certain death, chosen his side.

Now he just had to live through it.

"I take it I'm more important to you than Strawhat?" the quipped reply did little to rattle his opponent; Borsalino's only response was to spread his hands apart, conjure forth a sword of light between them, and savage a swing down at his head. A flash of recognition burst through the blonde's brain, conjuring up an old, recently rediscovered memory. He would feint right first, then step forward and swing down at the left. Favoring his right arm, shielding his left. An old war wound that had never quite healed. A weakness. One that could be exploited.

_Weakness._

That single slash seemed to unfold in slow motion for Naruto; his hyper-awareness flinging itself into full swing. Electricity rippled through his brain and muscles, increasing his reaction speed to epic propoirtions. It was like flicking a switch; Naruto could suddenly hear his heart hammering in his ears, like the drums of a great hunt out for his blood. A single second felt like an eternity to him. He could just reach out and touch him, and the admiral wouldn't be able to do anything. Had Kizaru moved at the speed of light, Naruto might've found himself hard pressed to defend. But he'd moved with human speed. And in this instant, a fickle flicker in time, Naruto was anything but human.

Mjolnir descend mercilessly.

_Crrrrrrraaaaaack._

A sickening wrench signalled the obliteration of Borsalinos man's sword arm; his elbow pulverized in a singe swing of the seastone hammer. Another swing finished the job just before reality came slamming back in, his former mentor aborting the swing to gawp at the sudden loss of the appendage.

Kizaru's eye went wide behind his sunglasses as his right arm was severed from his body, the limb now falling away from him in a flash. The fingers were wriggling slightly as the nerve endings within them struggled to receive signal from his brain once more, dropping the light sword that they once held as his hand groped on blindly. He'd made a mistake; it had been so long since he'd used a sword, since he'd squared off against an adversary like this, that he'd let himself fall back into old patterns. Predictable patterns.

Naruto knew those patterns.

Something inside the old man snapped. He moved then. No thought, no concsious indication. He simply moved, bringing his fist up under the blonde's jaw. There was no blur, no sensation of movement. He simply had a thought and the next instant, his fists were swinging and his former student was _bleeding._

Naruto's head snapped backward from the light speed uppercuts, a fine mist of blood bursting between his lips. Kizaru saw it in his eyes then; a flicker of fear in those sapphire orbs as he shot upwards. And then he was gone, vanishing in a crackle of energy. The span of a single beat, the beating of a human heart, that was all it took for him to recover. A crackle of lightning, and he stood across from his old mentor once more, blooded, but not beaten.

"Fuck." he spat out a bloody gob onto the ground. "What the hell was that? I didn't even see you move."

"You surprised me, too." Kizaru drawled, yet the smile didn't quite reach his eyes. "Looks like you're more than just a logia now, neh? Scaaa~aaary."

"You'd be right about that." Naruto grinned, a stray spark coursing between his teeth. "You're looking at the proud owner of the Goro Goro no mi." Still asmile-he cracked his neck and afforded the admiral a bloodthirsty chuckle, lips pulling back to expose the bloody whites of his canines.

"Ya know...I wonder which is _really _faster, Kizaru-kun? Light...**or lightning?!"**

Light and lightning; each dissolved into their natural element and surged forward to collide with the other. Many would say that the whole of Saboady Archipeligo trembled that day; others would claim that the heavens themselves had spoken; and still others would claim that armageddon itself had come, that the entire world was finally at its wits end. Many might claim to have witnessed the spectacle firsthand-to have seen the clash between Uzumaki Naruto and Admiral Kizaru, the battle of these twin titans.

And there would be only one victor.

* * *

><p>Blows were exchanged with blinding intensity; twin streaks of saffron and sapphire colliding, clashing, only to split apart again instants later. To the untrained eye, one might think they were evenly matched-Naruto and Kizaru, their naitive elements equal in speed, strength, power. But that was wrong. Naruto was losing. It was not a sure thing; nor was it a certainty at the very first; there was no decisive blow to cripple him, no injury to debilitate him, no taunt to infuriate him. He was just losing.<p>

Slowly.

With each collision, he felt his strength slipping away, he might be fast, but Kizaru was faster still. He had that tiny edge in speed; not enough to win the conflict outright, but just enough to prevent his blows from more than glancing blows at best, he hadn't had a decisive hit for at least five minutes now. His sole solace was that he'd managed to disarm Kizaru early on. Literally. The man's right arm had been obliterated just below the elbow-a injury like that couldn't be ignored for very long without serious blood loss.

And yet somehow, Kizaru was starting to overwhelm him.

It had started out slowly at first, the marine admiral landing more blows than he should have.

They wrestled and grapped, twisted and turned, each seeking a handhod where was to be found. Naruto gave as good as he got but he was tiring. Kizaru remained ruthless and relentless-never letting up, even for an instant. Attack attack attack attack, he'd done nothing else since Naruto had taken his arm, and it certainly didn't sem like he needed to change that strategy, anymore. He was just so damned fast! Combine that with his haki, and inhuman stamina, and you'd an opponent who was as inexorable as he was unbeatable.

With a hiss they broke apart, buying Naruto preciou seconds to draw a breath.

"What's the matter, pops?" he gasped out. "You're looking pale."

Kizaru didn't rise to the bait, simply adjusting his stance and motioning the younger man forward. They impacted with a heavy thud, a sudden fury of blows exchanged between them. He could feel each hit, flashes of pain and promises of future bruises, but Naruto could hear the admiral's breathing becoming thick and labored when he delivered a knee to the man's midsection and pushed away. All the while both Logia's remained unaware of the sudden threat that had intruded upon the battlefield several groves away, in the form of one Bartholemew Kuma.

Billions of blows were made, broken, blocked in the span of hearbeat, the groves ripped apart as they drove against each, light and lightning. Block. Parry. Block. Naruto dutifully warded off dozens of strikes, but with each he warded off, hundreds of smaller strikes made their mark. It was humiliating. Despite taking most of Kizaru's arm, he was literally dying of bug bites. He couldn't use his own element in grand attacks as might have liked; as they carried the risk of leaving him open, and did nothing to the yellow-clad man unless he was actually touching him. So their dance continued. Block. Parry. Block.

_Parry._

He connected at long last, swatting aside Kizaru's sword to sheathe a haki-embued fist in the man's gut to the elbow. There! Millions of volts of electricity ripped through his opponent's body as he bent double, lifted a leg-

_Block._

Naruto felt his muscles scream as the admiral's heel swung around, smashing against his arm with bone-breaking force. He continued to pour electricity through them in a desperate attempt to heighten his reflexes; his body slowly cooking under the strain. But what else could he do? Anything else and he would lose in an instant. Kizaru kept ramping up the speed, his attacks becoming more and more savage unpredictable and deadly to a fault with each and every encounter. He was the one making mistakes, not the admiral, and if this continued-

_Parry!_

Something tore in his shoulder as the admiral managed to get a finger around, a thin lance of light streaking into his solidified flesh to reopen his wounds from Thriller Bark. Naruto made one mistake too many then; the pain affecting his airm, causing him to overextend himself, swing Mjolnir a hair too wide. Borsalino was immediately there, waiting for him.

"You're ooooo~ooopen."

Ribs shattered like so much glass, bones breaking and snapping as Kizaru's lightspeed kick struck him in the side. Ground. Pain. Blood. Odd. He didn't remember falling down. Didn't remember bleeding. Tasting blood in his mouth. Rage ripped through him like a red tide and the pain was suddenly everywhere, filling the core of his being. A hand closed around his collar, hoisting him up to face his oppressor. Kizaru's visage swelled up a half-second later, filling his vision.

"Too bad." Despite his victory, the bloodied admiral actually sounded oddly remorseful. "You lose."

_'No.'_ he thought. _'Not like this.'_

Naruto bucked, jerking himself free of the larger man's grasp. Kizaru didn't fight him, he let the blond fall, dropping him to the charred grass like a stone. Naruto could hear his heart, still pounding in his ears...or where those footsteps? He craned his neck, suddenly-painfully aware of the shadow blotting out the sun. He could hear words, but his mind refused to comprehend them; that fall had done more damage to his head than he'd thought, hadn't it? But even so, he refused to fall here.

_"Capture me?" _he hissed, a storm of dark fury knotting his features as he struggled to his knees. "You'll have ta kill me first!"

"Who said anything about killing you?"

He staggered to his feet just in time to see the towering form of Bartholemew Kuma looming overhead. The massive man had just removed one of his gloves, exposing a paw-printed hand. For all his lack of strengths, a low growl tore out of the blonde's throat, lighting a fire in his stomach. Oh. Not this again! The absolute last thing he wanted was to be sent flying somewhere, not for a second time! Oddly enough Kizaru made no move to intervene; the mardine simply stood aside, studiously looking in the other direction as the Shichibukai lowered his palm.

Despite himself, Naruto tried to crawl backwards.

"Do not fear," the large man reassured him in that infuriating calm voice. "I didn't kill your friends."

Naruto bristled, his back arching like a cornered cat as that hand came closer and closer still.

"Don't you fucking da-

The pirate was still swearing when Kuma's hand descended upon him, the sharp contact sending him flying, stabbing a new spike of agony coursing through his wounds. Then...

_Blackness._

**A/N: FWAH! Suuuuch a long chapter! My eyes are KILLING ME! Although, being a skeleton...I HAVE NO EYES! The fight is over! As I said, there would only be one victor, and I put a ton of effort in that fight, blood sweat and tears I tell you! We learn of Naruto's past with Kizaru, a bittersweet reunion between master and student, ending in the latter's eventual defeat. BUT WHERE DID KUMA SEND HIM?! Where oh where has he landed? I promise you'll love it, but you have to guess for the poor bastard!'s sake! ****YOHO! **

**Oh and please don't forget to review until my ears fall off. Although being a skeleton...I have no ears to listen with! YOHOHOHOHO! SKUUUUUULLL JOOOOOKE! **

**As I said, I worked uber hard on this chapter and I'm sure you can all tell whats coming next!**

**S****o...in the immortal words of Atlas...**

**...Review, would you kindly? **

**R&R! =D**


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